warhammer40kfandomcom-20200222-history
Torquemada Coteaz
Torquemada Coteaz is an Inquisitor Lord of the Ordo Malleus who gained his reputation for being a fearsome Daemonhunter through years of action against the Forces of Chaos. He is now known as the High Protector of the Formosa Sector. With his power and popularity, he is served by literally thousands of Acolytes and Throne Agents, and he arms himself with rare weapons like his Anointed Daemonhammer, Artificer Armour, a Glovodan Eagle, and various potent relics of the Inquisition. History Torquemada Coteaz has ever been driven by a single consuming passion: to destroy daemons wheresoever they manifest. Unlike many of his fellow Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus, Coteaz always refused to contemplate harnessing the power of the Warp for his own ends, and aggressively prosecuted those who lacked his purity. So perished Coteaz's mentor, Inquisitor Laredian, an old man executed at his student's hand for dabbling in forbidden arts. Upon Laredian's death, Coteaz assumed his responsibilities as Protector of the Formosa Sector. Through alliance, coercion and outright intimidation, Coteaz formed a spy network of contacts, henchmen and infiltrators throughout the sector's inhabited worlds. Not for Coteaz is the way of the Inquisitorial Mandate, of requisitioning Imperial troops when need presents itself; instead, he sought an army of his own, ever at his beck and call. As High Protector, Coteaz has thousands of followers in the Formosa Sector, of many different dispositions. His base of operations is the Inquisitorial fortress of Nemesis Tessera. It is not known how many of the Formosa Sector's Planetary Defence Forces are as much Coteaz's sworn men as they are those of their commanders. Or how many hive gangs act under Coteaz's control, given license to pursue their own petty activities so long as they act as his eyes. People disappear easily in Formosa, and its citizens know better than to inquire. At first glance, Coteaz's stranglehold would seem merely another cautionary tale concerning the temptations of absolute power, yet he does not seek to rule, and the sector's Planetary Governors are left to oversee their duties largely without oversight or interference. Coteaz's network of informants exists only to provide warning of any threat overtaking Formosa. It is a most efficient form of protection; after all, in a sector where any gathering of three citizens contains at least two of Coteaz's informants, it is nearly impossible for a Traitor to gather a following. Thus has Coteaz's domain prospered in an age when the Imperium is increasingly brought to ruin by the enemy within. Few other men could hope to replicate this success, for Coteaz is a man consumed by his chosen task. He seldom sleeps, and spends every waking hour sifting through reports delivered by his faithful Glovodan Psyber-eagle, or personally leading his forces against daemons, Heretics or aliens foolish enough to trespass on his realm. Lately, Coteaz has cast his pall of influence over worlds bordering the Formosa Sector, bringing yet more planets under his protection. Yet even as his borders expand, Coteaz's worries grow. He is now an old man, and like all old men he fears leaving his work undone without a successor to continue it; of all the many Acolytes Coteaz has cultivated, none have had the necessary drive or strength of will. Thusly, Coteaz has begun a search for forgotten fragments of cloning lore and alien rejuvenation technology, any means of extending his life, or rather, any means bar one. Coteaz knows that the boon he seeks could easily be granted by a Daemon, should he summon and bind it according to the proper rituals. Part of him longs to embrace this small evil, that it may firm up the foundations of his righteous work. It is a temptation that grows stronger with every passing day, but one that Coteaz has stalwartly resisted, at least so far. Deeds of Coteaz Inquisitor Coteaz's career is long and filled with incident. Most notable amongst his many persecutions of the daemon and the Heretic are the following: the extermination of the Xethorites during the Lorgamar Rebellions (for which Coteaz was later known as the Scourge of the Xethorites); the purging of the Medarean Nebula (for which he was elevated to the rank of Inquisitor Lord); the cleansing of the hives of Opridia of the taint of the Plaguelord Nurgle (known as the Great Scouring of 956.M41), and the destruction of the daemon-engineers of Glovada Forge World. Inside the Inquisition, however, he is most known for the way he ascended to the position of Inquisitor Lord. During one of the Inquisitorial Conclaves on the planet Varoth, Coteaz's erstwhile mentor, Inquisitor Lord Laredian, presented a Warp-tainted crystal, which he presented as a potential useful item to track and root out other tainted items, if it could be harnessed in the name of Mankind, and pleaded for the Ordo to study the artefact. As Laredian finished his plea, Coteaz stood up, and brought down his Daemonhammer on the crystal, shattering it utterly while levelling an accusation of Extremis Diabolus against Laredian, denouncing him as a blasphemer and trafficker with abominations. The conclave erupted and castigated Coteaz for his disrespect of proper protocol, but the unfased Coteaz merely produced a small hourglass, and stated he would prove his accusation in only the time necessary for the small device to empty. Coteaz then proceeded to bring to light multiple occasions where Laredian had used Daemonhosts, or used Warp magicks in order to fight the enemy. Coteaz ended his demonstration of guilt by executing the heretic himself on the spot. This decisive act, combined with his absolute intransigence against using anything ever touched by the Archenemy, ensured that Coteaz was promoted to fill the place of the man he just executed by the shocked council. Wargear *'Artificer Power Armour' *'Bolt Pistol' *'Master-Crafted Nemesis Daemonhammer' - Coteaz is one of the few Inquisitors to wield an anointed Daemonhammer, blessed by the Holy Order of the Sacred Thorn, a devotional order of the Formosa Sector and coated in sacred oils inimical to daemons. Its power is anathema to daemons, beyond that of a normal Daemonhammer. *'Psyber-Eagle' - Coteaz is accompanied by a Glovodan Eagle, a gift from the Adeptus Mechanicus for ridding a Forge World of daemonic taint. Through it, Coteaz can channel his potent psychic energies. Such is the link between it and its master that Coteaz can tap into its senses and achieve greater awareness of his surroundings. *'Frag Grenades' *'Krak Grenades' *'Psyk-Out Grenades' Known Associates *'Interrogator DuGrae' - Interrogator DuGrae was a former Thunderbolt-pilot of great talent who participated in the Third War for Armageddon against the Orks of Warboss Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka. Obtaining ace status against the flying heaps of junk that pass as aircrafts amongst the Orks, DuGrae was noticed by Torquemada Coteaz, who made her part of his retinue. Quickly rising to its ranks, the trusted acolyte was soon granted Interrogator-status and permanently despatched to the Conclave of Encaladus in the Sol System. DuGrae’s skills as a fighter-pilot were put to good use as a messenger in service of the Ordo Malleus, delivering sensitive messages that were deemed too sensible to be misinterpreted or too dangerous to be send by Astropath. To ensure total security of this message, Interrogator DuGrae had received multiple cortical enhancements to ensure that she had no knowledge of the message she conveyed and that would fry her brain instantly if anyone tried to pry her mind open by psychic means. To complete her missions, DuGrae had been granted command of a swift warp-capable messenger ship, a nimble and agile vessel that handed almost like a fighter and which was merely crewed by herself and her Navigator. Interrogator DuGrae was killed on mission to the Trail of Saint Evisser. Sources *''Codex: Daemonhunters'' (3rd Edition), pp. 40, 56-57 *''Codex: Grey Knights'' (5th Edition), pg. 45 *''Dark Heresy: The Radical's Handbook'' (RPG), pg. 147 *''Imperial Armour Volume Two, Second Edition - War Machines of the Adeptus Astartes'', pg. 22 *''The Inquisition: An Illustrated Guide'', pg. 20 *''Grey Knights'' (Novel) by Ben Counter in The Grey Knights Omnibus (Anthology), pg.195-197 es:Torquemada Coteaz Category:T Category:C Category:Characters Category:Imperial Characters Category:Inquisition Category:Ordo Malleus Category:Imperium Category:Inquisitors